Hello Ladies – “The Drive”

Season One, Episode Eight

Grade: A

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There was a lot of talk about Stephen Merchant’s Stuart being too mean, too uncaring about other people’s feelings and just a general douche. And while he did portray all of these things, he also occasionally showed a side of him that is tender and thoughtful. Even in scenes when he’s trying too hard, he can be considered more of a bumbling fool than someone who is downright cruel. But here, as the first season comes to an end, Stuart shows off his sensitive side, putting off something he wants and engaging in something more important.

Backing up a bit, “The Drive” picks up after “The Wedding” where both Stuart and Jessica are gleaming with great news. Jessica finally breaks through and is the new actress on NCIS: LA while Stuart is meeting up with Kimberly, the gorgeous model who used Stuart’s room from the last episode. Even Wade is feeling cool and confident as he also looks forward to a night of partying with his friends. Wade’s sort-of-ex-wife notices the change and for the first time, seems like the tables have turned. He’s not begging her to give their marriage another try, and that’s incredibly appealing.

But it wouldn’t be an episode of Hello Ladies with many speed bumps along the way. Kimberly practically takes Stuart (driving his friends) on a scavenger hunt from club to party to party trying to catch up to her. And like Stuart, he has a one-track mind: meet with Kimberly and then hook up with her. It’s been Stuart’s dream to hook up with a model all season long, and this is the closest he’s come. It’s hard to root against him just because it’s clear that he wants this badly, but you suspect that this isn’t going to work out.

It’s surprising that Stuart is the one that does end up having a chance at obtaining his dream. He finally meets up with Kimberly and they talk, flirt, drink shots, and spend alone time on the beach. She strips and dives into the ocean and asks Stuart to join her. Merchant does some great subtle acting here, showing off his excitement but covered with the nervousness a guy like him would have. But on top of it all, he’s concerned for Jessica who has just been replaced on NCIS. He’s about to strip down and join Kimberly in the ocean, but his conscious gets the better of him and he leaves to be alongside Jessica.

It’s tasteful and incredibly touching stuff, something Hello Ladies has only shown its last two episodes of the season. What I found interesting was how Stuart’s presence wasn’t something Jessica needed immediately. He could’ve swam in the ocean with Kimberly, dried up, then visited Jessica before bed and we still would’ve considered it generous behavior. But Stuart drops everything just to make sure she’s okay, and he even allows her to pick the movie! That’s some damn sweet stuff.

On top of Stuart and Jessica, Wade gets a dose of reality from the two in separate occasions. They attempt to tell Wade that his marriage isn’t worth saving and how sometimes, no matter how hard you try and want something, it doesn’t work out. Wade takes Stuart’s advice and removes his wife from the picture on his phone. Who would’ve thought Stuart would dish out some useful advice on this series! Not me, but this could be the start of a new type of Hello Ladies, one that allows its cringe-comedy to stand out but not over-power the series. The Office with Steve Carell was able to balance this sort of comedy very well, and we all know how successful that show was.

The stars here do shine brightly, as Stephen Merchant and Christine Woods share a chemistry that is certainly worth revisiting (hopefully for another season). Surely their story-line isn’t over as they have plenty more embarrassing situations to be trapped in, but at least now we have the foundation that no matter how miserable each of them fail, they have each other to fall back on. Whether it’s Jessica teaching Stuart to dance at the wedding, or Stuart blowing off a model to watch a movie with Jessica, the blueprint for a very good comedy has finally been established.

Season Grade: B+

Homeland – “A Red Wheelbarrow”

Season Three, Episode Eight

Grade: B-

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Everyone’s story keeps on moving forward in Homeland, and for the most part it’s good. The Javadi plan is the big picture that Saul is in charge of, but the little pieces involved almost fall apart. Saul and Mira are trying to salvage their marriage, and Carrie’s 13 weeks pregnant and is advised to take things easy at her job (I chuckled when Carrie rolled her eyes with the “that’s impossible” expression). But it wouldn’t be Homeland without a mountain of glitches along the way.

First, the immediate plot-line where Carrie is meeting with Franklin to expose the person who exploded the bomb (and possibly constructed) at the Langley bombing. Everything goes according to plan and just as it looks like Brody would be exonerated, Franklin is seen holding a gun with intention to kill the bomber hiding in his hotel room. Naturally (in crazy Carrie world) she abondons the mission, disregards her orders and attempts to stop the assassination. This would ruin everything the CIA has been working on for months and reveal the play with Javadi. But Carrie doesn’t care because she wants nothing more than to have Brody return to her as a free man.

I mean, come on now! I get how Carrie’s bi-polar and how she’s been dealing with a lot of craziness throughout the series, but without even blinking her eyes she decides that it’s worth ruining the entire mission? Why do they even keep Carrie involved if she keeps pulling these stunts. After repeated warnings, Quinn shoots Carrie in the shoulder and Franklin kills the bomber. So on top of taking lithium, drinking heavily, and being as a stressful job, Carrie puts the baby through the trauma of almost being shot. Yeah, Carrie’s got issues.

I wonder how Saul would’ve reacted to Carrie’s shenanigans. Instead he was too busy traveling to Caracas where he pays $10 million for Brody. The look Brody gives Saul when he sees him is priceless. But more importantly, what’s the play here? What could Saul possibly want or need Brody for? Is it related to the Javadi plan? You just know that Carrie is not going to like Saul going behind her back like this, though I’m sure Saul isn’t going to be happy when he hears that Carrie almost blew their cover and had to be freaking shot to be stopped.

One small element about the episode that I did like was the inside look of Fara’s home and the reason why she hasn’t told her ailing father that she works for the CIA. But after she misses two days of work, she gets a visit by an agent who reminds her that she has work to do. The conversation is overheard by her father and we discover the family still has ties to Tehran and if her identity is revealed then those family members’ lives are in danger. This was indeed a great little bit of information to share about Fara. She’s a new agent and it makes sense that she feels the way she does, and how she’s already getting sick with the way things are being run. It’s believable, much more than when Quinn wanted to quit.

For the most part, there are more good things that are happening that outweigh the bad, the bad being Carrie’s pregnancy. Seriously, is anyone interested in that at all? But Homeland has presented us with many questions that need to be answered, and it’s something worth sticking with for the time being. Can Saul really pull this off? Homeland seems to paint this portrait of Super-Saul, the pure CIA agent who is always right. They could really knock him down a handful of pegs if this all blows up in his face, that is if Carrie doesn’t ruin it for him.

How I Met Your Mother – “Mom and Dad”

Season Nine, Episode Ten

Grade: C

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Right from the beginning, I wasn’t crazy about the premise for this episode. With a Parent Trap vibe, Barney wants to force his parents to get back with each other, starting with malfunctioning the elevator and suggesting they have sex with each other. He even goes through the trouble in lowering wine, champagne, and a iPod playing a sensual version of “Bang Bang Bangity Bang” while they’re stuck in the elevator, but to no avail. Barney’s plans are complicated when James has the same idea with hopes his dad and mom will get back together.

The story is weak but it’s still full of many fun HIMYM moments, especially the black-and-white musical sequence when Barney and James imagine their parents reuniting. But it doesn’t do enough to carry the rather lackluster A-story. Meanwhile, Barney gives Ted the mission to keep the Wayne Gretzky signed photo for Robin until they’re married. Best Man Mosby is on the job, but after taking a shower he finds the photo covered with ink. “My calligraphy ink! I mean, the Gretzky photo!” Ted exclaims. This allows the alter-ego of Detective Mosby to come back, though Lily comments that he’s such a bad detective that he can’t even detect sarcasm.

This part of the story-line is much better, though still frustrating how it doesn’t move the season along at all. Detective Mosby has three suspects: Billy Zapka, the shifty eye bellhop, and Robin’s cousin Claude from Quebec. After investigating all of them, he comes to the conclusion that he must’ve spilled the ink on the photo, until at the same time him and Lily discover is was all a part of Zapka’s plan to steal the photo! Not very surprising, but still entertaining enough to keep the episode moving at a good pace. But after a great episode from last week where we get insight to important character decisions, all of this just seems irrelevant.

Finally in the C-story Marshall and Daphne are getting along, singing The Proclaimers’ “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” with great enthusiasm, until like the switch of a light Daphne starts lashing out at Marshall. We’ve spent way too much time already with this road trip, but again this was a decision made by the writers and hopefully it all pays off at the end. I am glad to say that this seems to be the final episode Daphne is seen alongside Marshall, as she attends her daughter’s speech as Marshall leaves her with her family. There’s only 27 hours left until the wedding and Marshall couldn’t rejoin the gang any sooner!

In the end, Billy Zapka comes out at the real winner, which was due since according to him he’s been the bad guy his whole life after The Karate Kid. But do we really want an episode where Zapka plays a big part of the story? Where does that get us with how Ted meets his wife? Where is the character development as we wind down the final season of HIMYM? Sure, it’s a fun-filled episode with gimmicks, but it’s one that if you skip, you wouldn’t miss much and in my opinion, HIMYM can do much better.

Last but not least:

• “Marriage is just a meaningless piece of paper.” – Barney. Robin’s a lucky woman.
• That case from eight years ago that Detective Mosby hasn’t solved: The Pineapple Incident. Now THAT’S an episode I wouldn’t mind seeing.
• Things Marshall did wrong while Daphne was throwing a hissy fit: he left the bag of oranges on the roof of the car, flagged an officer down when Daphne was driving 67 mph, and used a word that is offensive to Daphne and her people alike, “Trekkie.”
• “Kids don’t understand logic. Kids understand who shows up.”